The Bowen Island Arts Council (BIAC) is thrilled to announce that Macdonald Realty will be publishing a custom 2015 calendar featuring the work of resident artists. The 70-year-old real estate firm prints 10,000 calendars each year, working with arts organizations to help coordinate the project. Local Macdonald Realty realtor Barry Thomas pitched the idea to the company last year, and subsequently connected the firm to BIAC. Rosey Hudson, Creative and Brand Marketing Manager for Macdonald Realty formally offered the opportunity to the arts organization this month. In response, Gallery Curator Janet Esseiva said: “The Visual Arts Committee of BIAC, on behalf of local artists, thanks Macdonald Realty for this great opportunity. We know that the 2015 calendar will be very special, featuring what will no doubt be stunning work by Bowen artists.” BIAC will receive 200 copies of the calendar for fundraising sales.

Artists whose work is selected will be asked to agree to one-time use of their work, retaining all rights. Their bios and contact info will be included in the calendar and they will receive 10 complimentary calendars.

BIAC members are encouraged to submit their work for consideration by emailing a digital photo to calendar@macrealty.com (max 6MB per email). All mediums will be accepted and artists can submit more than one piece. Preference will be given to horizontal pieces that showcase the beauty of British Columbia (urban, rural and island life, ocean and mountain scenes, and of course home portraits and other subjects which would be a natural fit for a real estate company’s calendar). Experience shows that still life, portraits and flowers are generally not chosen by the selection committee. The submission deadline is March 31, 2014. Submissions must include the artist’s name, the title of piece, the dimensions of piece, and the medium.